City’s Jews mark sombre milestone as anniversary of Oct. 7 attacks near

Members of Manitoba’s Jewish community reflected Sunday about how their calendars have forever changed after Oct. 7, 2023.

The Jewish Federation of Winnipeg rallied roughly 2,000 people to march, pray and find solace in one another ahead of a tragic milestone.

“We are not the same people we were two years ago,” Paula Parks told a crowd of hundreds who braved a rainy and cold evening to gather on the Asper Jewish Community Campus.

“In the face of loss and fear we have experienced, we have become more Jewish, more determined to stand firm and, hopefully, more connected to one another.”

Parks spoke about how Tuesday’s date — which is once again right on the heels of the High Holidays, a period of reflection and renewal — is “etched into our collective memory.”

The event organizer was among the emotional attendees who expressed frustration and sadness that 48 hostages, most of whom are thought to be dead, are believed to still be held by Hamas.

Tuesday will mark the two-year anniversary of the Palestinian militant group launching a surprise attack on Israel and the region becoming an active warzone in response.

There were about 1,200 people killed and 251 others taken hostage in that co-ordinated assault. The war’s overall death toll recently surpassed 65,000.

“In Judaism, especially, when we mourn, we gather, and that’s why we’re here. We’re here to take care of each other,” Nina Eilberg said before leading two emotional singalongs Sunday.

Following a neighbourhood walk by a fence decorated with photos of Canadians and Israelis who have been killed, the group sang two national anthems.

Mourners held plastic poppy anemones (Israel’s national flower, as well as a symbol of Canadian soldiers who’ve died for democracy) and Star of David flags.

Eilberg said she felt taken care of in the crowd, citing all the friendly faces around her.

This year’s commemorative walk was planned a day before the start of Sukkot, a Jewish festival intended to celebrate the joys of harvest season.

The annual holiday, which begins at sundown Monday, happens after the most well-known Jewish celebrations: Rosh Hashanah (Jewish new year) and Yom Kippur (day of atonement).

Also Monday, representatives from both sides of the Hamas-Israel war were scheduled to meet in Egypt for “indirect talks.”

“We are here to demonstrate that we believe in western values. In life. In democracy,” Ingrid Neumarkt, a member of the local Jewish community, said.

In light of a new U.S. proposal to ease tensions in the Middle East, Hamas leadership and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have signalled plans to release all remaining hostages.

“I’ll believe in it when I see it,” Neumarkt said, noting Israel is the only democracy in the region and Hamas does not have a good track record when it comes to making peace-related promises.

Netanyahu has stopped short of pledging to withdraw all forces from Gaza, where the overwhelming majority of civilian deaths have occurred and the death toll continues to surge.

This year, Sukkot comes to an end on Oct. 13. Two years ago, the week-long holiday took place between Sept. 29 and the evening of Oct. 6.

Anat and Timor Froimovich, an Israeli-Canadian couple, arrived at the campus with their two teenage children.

The duo said it was important to them to make time between holidays to walk alongside fellow Jews, even though they did not feel entirely comfortable doing so in public.

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“If it was safe, there wouldn’t be as many police as protesters,” Timor said, adding they keep their household’s large Israeli flag out of streetview.

The United Nations’ humanitarian-affairs co-ordination office indicates 308 Israeli injuries have been reported over the last two years. Its online database shows the Palestinian population has suffered a combined 10,157 injuries.

This public resource encompasses confrontations between Israelis and Palestinians “in the context of the occupation and conflict.” It includes civilians and soldiers, but only physical injuries that resulted in a hospital visit are included.

— with files from The Associated Press

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

Maggie Macintosh
Education reporter

Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie.

Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative.

Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.